The Utah Jazz’s season is off to a rough start. News out of Salt Lake City today is that star forward Gordon Hayward is expected to miss the next 6 weeks with a broken and dislocated finger on his left hand.
The story was first broken by Chris Haynes of ESPN.
Sources: Utah Jazz forward Gordon Hayward dislocated finger on left hand and is in process of determining next step. Expected to miss time.
— Chris Haynes (@ChrisBHaynes) October 7, 2016
Gordon Hayward Out Six Weeks With Finger Injury
The injury could set them back early as he was their leading scorer last season averaging 19.7 points per game. However, the loss might not have as big an impact due to their off-season additions of George Hill and Joe Johnson. Hill averaged 12.1 points per game with the Indiana Pacers last year, and Johnson averaged 12.2 points per game with the Brooklyn Nets and Miami Heat.
Last season, the Jazz were decimated by injury and still finished 9th in the conference. Key players Alec Burks, Rudy Gobert, and Derrick Favors missed a combined 92 games last season. If those players can stay healthy this year, they should be able to sustain the early loss of Hayward, and as a result make a big leap in the Western Conference standings.
Main Photo:
Denver Nuggets shooting guard Rudy Fernandez (5) defends Utah Jazz small forward Gordon Hayward (20) during the second quarter at the Pepsi Center on Wednesday, December 28, 2011. AAron Ontiveroz, The Denver Post (Photo By AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post via Getty Images)
